In an interview with POLITICO Magazine, McMorrow, a state senator, said it wasn’t clear to her that Chuck Schumer could continue in his role as Senate minority leader, and that she would not vote for him as leader should she ultimately win a highly-contested primary and general election.

Democratic Michigan state senator Mallory McMorrow said in a new interview that her party needs to occupy more popular cultural spaces so it doesn't come off as "elitist."

Democratic Michigan State Senator Mallory McMorrow, who is considering jumping into the state’s Democratic primary for the open Senate seat, said Schumer should step down from his leadership post in an interview with POLITICO published Tuesday morning.

Mallory McMorrow, a Michigan Democrat eyeing a Senate run, said it's time for Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to step aside.

TIME spoke to McMorrow earlier in March, as she was contemplating a Senate run, about her party's messaging mistakes, the story the Democrats should be telling, and how to reclaim the American dream. This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity. So what went wrong for the Democrats, and how can they fix it?

Raised in Whitehouse, New Jersey, and educated at Notre Dame, McMorrow is serving her second, four-year term in the state Senate at age 38. She is expected to announce soon her candidacy for Michigan’s U.S. Senate seat being vacated by the Democrat Gary Peters.